1. Field of Use
This invention relates generally to display racks or shelving arrangements for easy access to shoppers of articles contained therein. In particular, it relates to a display rack having a plurality of containers capable of being arranged in many horizontal and vertically stacked configurations.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Various display racks or shelving arrangements have been proposed for completely displaying products to be sold and which permit easy access to the products by the shopper. One example of such a display rack is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,193,351, issued to the present applicant, Belokin, on Mar. 18, 1980, and which provides a center post which is made up of segments telescopingly engaged together, the telescoping post extending upwardly from a single hole in a base. Another example of that general type of display is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,295,671, issued to Wuensch on Jan. 3, 1967. The British Patent No. 10,277, issued to Milne in 1906, shows a plurality of vertical posts on a single base and in which the articles themselves form the supporting means between the intervening shelves, an arrangement similar to that of U.S. Pat. No. 2,951,593, issued to Lake on Sept. 6, 1960. The German Patent No. 2,321,999, issued to Delbrouck on Nov. 21, 1974, shows a rack with vertically stacked containers supporting each other. Some of these prior art references have certain deficiencies which render them somewhat unsuitable for point-of-purchase display of some articles.
The Wuensch and Milne patents disclose racks with vertically adjacent shelves and in which the articles displayed provide support for the tray immediately above. Such display racks are suitable for articles which are sufficiently rigid to support a tray and of a uniform height, and for trays where only one kind of merchandise will be sold. However, if the displayed articles are not rigid, are of varying heights, or if it is desired to sell various kinds of articles on different shelves of the same display rack and permit simultaneous access to any of the shelves, the Wuensch and Milne racks are unsuitable.
The Lake patent discloses a rack having vertically spaced-apart platforms or shelves on a vertical center post and which does not rely on the articles being displayed for support of those shelves. A plurality of collars and pins, the latter horizontally disposed through vertically-spaced transverse openings in the center post, provide the support means for the shelves. The collars and pins are an unnecessarily complicated shelf support means with numerous parts. Further, the rack of the Lake patent provides no arrangement other than one in which the shelves are vertically stacked upon one another.
The Delbrouck patented device provides containers with an open upper end, but the upper end has a flange for accepting the bottom of the container immediately thereabove. In accepting that higher container's bottom, the upper end of the receiving container is closed off, there being no access provided to the contents of any container but the uppermost.